Grit Region Finals: Teddy's Friday Notebook

Team Teague 2025 has Bounce and Range The tallest player listed in their roster was 6’3. But that didn’t phase an electric Team Teague squad with tons of athleticism. 6’3 W [player_tooltip player_id="1296998" first="Cedric" last="Horton"] showed off some bounce early with an alley-oop finish to start and two impressive blocks off the glass. He also extended his range with a 3-pointer. PG [player_tooltip player_id="1373105" first="Mark" last="Zackery"] was also electric in the beginning with a quick score in transition and a solid dunk attempt. But it was PG [player_tooltip player_id="1297093" first="Michael" last="Cooper"] who stole the show. Cooper was on fire from beyond the arc with three triples in the opening minutes. He’s a super crafty ball handler with a lot of confidence shooting the ball. Team Teague would stay hot on offense with some more triples and solid ball movement to extend the lead to double-digits. Horton ended the first half with an athletic finish at the rim with a defender all up in his face. Teague had scored 52 first half points. Cooper had 19 of them. In the 2nd half, Cooper got going with buckets from all three levels. He also found Horton in transition for another slam. One final player to point out from Team Teague was guard [player_tooltip player_id="1297113" first="Shane" last="Sims"]. There’s a lot i liked from him. He hade extra passes, grabbed tough boards, and played super physical defensively. He played with a really high motor and contributed heavily to a blowout win. [player_tooltip player_id="1297093" first="Michael" last="Cooper"] scored 27 in the contest to lead all scorers. [player_tooltip player_id="1297113" first="Shane" last="Sims"] scored 13 and [player_tooltip player_id="1296998" first="Cedric" last="Horton"] had 11.   2025 Grind Family Chicago edges Sky’s The Limit (MI) in Classic Finish STL was off to a blazing 17-4 start. 5’7” 2026 G Jaden Price impressed early for STL with 4 quick points. Devin Gomez also hit two triples in the corner in the opening minutes. But their most impressive player was [player_tooltip player_id="1426129" first="Justin" last="Greer-Sykes"]. He’s a 6’0” guard with tons of physical tools who I loved watching in Michigan two months ago. His ability to box out and post-up is extraordinary for his position. Both of Gomez’s early triples were assisted by Sykes. GFC Rolled Back as [player_tooltip player_id="1385287" first="EJ" last="Breland"] showed lots of speed inside for four early points. 6’5” F Justin Bowen Jr used his strength to convert some difficult inside buckets and grab tough rebounds. In a matter of minutes. The game was tied, and the momentum completely shifted. Price and Sykes wouldn’t fold for STL. Jaden Price really got in your face on defense and was difficult to dribble past. He also made some terrific feeds on offense. [player_tooltip player_id="1426129" first="Justin" last="Greer-Sykes"] continued to impress with the ball, and did a great job getting to the line. Anthony Knight Jr also hit some buckets in the paint with a smooth release in transition. Sky’s the Limit led 31-28 at halftime, but GFC quickly regained the lead with some strong inside play by Bowen Jr. He was on both the floor and the glass battling for loose balls, and fighting for points in the paint. [player_tooltip player_id="1469251" first="Cooper" last="Kavanaugh"] also hit two 2nd half 3’s in the opening minutes. The two squads went back and forth throughout the 2nd half. [player_tooltip player_id="1385287" first="EJ" last="Breland"] hit two 3’s in the final minutes to give them a 6-pt lead. They cut it to one with Sykes and Price hitting shots. Up one, Breland made a terrific feed to Bowen in a double team, who had a wide open lane to slam it home with 25 seconds left. Breland ended with 18 points.   Camden Thompson has D1 potential for 15u Hardwood Midwest (MI) I missed the majority of the opening half with the previous game running late. But defense was a priority for both teams. It wasn’t until the final minutes of the half when Hardwood Midwest pulled away. Camden Thompson and James Young led the attack with terrific ball movement and spacing. Both players showed off similar skills. Thompson opened the 2nd half with a strong inside bucket, and a breakaway finish. Young immediately followed it up with an and-one in the post. A bank-shot in the post by Thompson made it a 21 point game. Thompson made some terrific passes in transition to get his teammates some easy baskets down low. What stood out the most with his passing was the speed if the ball. It somewhat reminds me of an NFL QB. Thompson scored 19 points and Young Scored 10 as Hardwood Midwest would cruise to a solid win.   Inside Scoring and Playmaking are 15u d1 Indiana’s Bread and Butter The inside game was D1 Indiana’s strongsuit to kick things off. [player_tooltip player_id="1297068" first="Julius" last="Gizzi"] showed me an impressive layup package and ball-handling skills while attacking the basket. Forward Ben Slagley forced tough shots on defense, and used his big body to get some inside buckets of his own in the paint. Then, PG [player_tooltip player_id="1428862" first="TJ" last="Davidson"] found buckets through contact and was really quick with his feet. The way this team shared the rock was super impressive too. I counted at least 13 assists in the opening 10 minutes. D1 Indiana was ahead by 25 points. Gizzi found a couple more baskets off a fastbreak and a cut to the basket to become the first player in double-figures. He then showed off his range by draining a 3-pointer An assist and coast-to-coast finish by Davidson ended the half. They were up big. Gizzi had 13 and Davidson had 11 at halftime. Slagley started the 2nd half strong with a 2nd chance bucket and some nice defensive stops. D1 Indiana continued to share the rock, and crash the boards throughout the 2nd half for more east pts en route to a big win over god’s gift. Julis Gizzi led all scorers with 25 points. [player_tooltip player_id="1428862" first="TJ" last="Davidson"] scored 13 points. Wing [player_tooltip player_id="1297041" first="Jack" last="McKinsey"] was also very productive and found buckets from several areas of the floor or D1 Indiana. He finished with 14 points.